{"id":2831,"date":"2026-07-05T22:34:38","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T22:34:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arizonamovinginsider.com\/?p=2831"},"modified":"2026-07-05T22:34:38","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T22:34:38","slug":"folarin-balogun-cleared-to-play-against-belgium-after-one-game-ban-suspended-by-fifa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arizonamovinginsider.com\/?p=2831","title":{"rendered":"Folarin Balogun cleared to play against Belgium after one-game ban suspended by FIFA"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In a stunning twist ahead of the World Cup Round of 16, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has confirmed that United States men\u2019s national team striker Folarin Balogun will be eligible to play against Belgium on Monday in Seattle.<\/p>\n

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The 25-year-old forward was facing an automatic one-match suspension following a straight red card during the USMNT\u2019s 2-0 Round of 32 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 1.<\/p>\n

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT | <\/b>United States moves on in World Cup despite Balogun red card controversy<\/b><\/p>\n

Balogun was sent off in the 64th minute following a VAR review for a challenge that stepped on the ankle of Bosnian defender Tarik Muharemovic\u2014an offense classified under \u201cserious foul play.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the FIFA release, it elected to utilize Article 27 of its code, which allows the judicial body to fully or partially suspend the implementation of an on-pitch disciplinary measure under a probationary period.<\/p>\n

The committee noted that \u201cthe implementation of the match suspension is suspended for a probationary period of one year.\u201d<\/p>\n

This means that while the red card remains on Balogun\u2019s record, his mandatory match suspension is put on hold. If he commits another infringement of a similar nature during the period, the suspension will be immediately reinstated alongside any new penalties.<\/p>\n

U.S. Soccer expressed satisfaction with the outcome while keeping the squad\u2019s eyes on the prize.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe accept the decision of the Disciplinary Committee and are pleased that Folarin Balogun is eligible to compete tomorrow,\u201d US Soccer said in a statement on Sunday. \u201cOur full attention is focused on the Round of 16 match against Belgium in Seattle, and we look forward to the continued support of our amazing fans.\u201d<\/p>\n

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President Donald Trump took to Truth Social to applaud FIFA\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you to FIFA for doing what was right, and reversing a great injustice! President DONALD J. TRUMP,\u201d he posted.<\/p>\n

RELATED STORY | <\/b>The 2026 World Cup is officially the most attended ever, according to FIFA<\/b><\/p>\n

The news brings relief to the Americans.<\/p>\n

Balogun has been the focal point of Mauricio Pochettino\u2019s high-pressing attack, establishing himself as the team\u2019s top scorer of the tournament with three goals in four matches. He scored in the first half against Bosnia and Herzegovina before his exit.<\/p>\n

Following the \u201cRonaldo Precedent\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

This is not the first time FIFA has used Article 27 to clear a player in time for major World Cup action. In November, Portuguese captain Cristiano Ronaldo faced a standard three-match ban for violent conduct after receiving a straight red card for an elbow against the Republic of Ireland during a qualifier.<\/p>\n

After serving just one match of that ban against Armenia, FIFA\u2019s disciplinary committee commuted the final two games of his suspension to a one-year probation period, citing his historically clean record. That decision kept Ronaldo eligible for Portugal\u2019s opening group matches in this 2026 tournament.<\/p>\n

FIFA\u2019s leniency with Balogun marks a similar use of discretionary power, keeping one of the host nation\u2019s brightest stars on the pitch when it matters most.<\/p>\n

The-CNN-Wire\u2122 & \u00a9 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.<\/i><\/p>\n

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In a stunning twist ahead of USA\u2019s World Cup Round of 16 match against Belgium, FIFA has confirmed that United States men\u2019s national team striker Folarin Balogun will be eligible to play on Monday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2830,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nFolarin Balogun cleared to play against Belgium after one-game ban suspended by FIFA - Arizona Moving Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/arizonamovinginsider.com\/?p=2831\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Folarin Balogun cleared to play against Belgium after one-game ban suspended by FIFA - Arizona Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In a stunning twist ahead of USA\u2019s World Cup Round of 16 match against Belgium, FIFA has confirmed that United States men\u2019s national team striker Folarin Balogun will be eligible to play on Monday.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/arizonamovinginsider.com\/?p=2831\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Arizona Moving Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-05T22:34:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9c272b4cf18e019eb01eb3c1b5d855fb\"},\"headline\":\"Folarin Balogun cleared to play against Belgium after one-game ban suspended by FIFA\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-05T22:34:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831\"},\"wordCount\":573,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/4c85c0ed267f56457308c50f1b0089fc-scaled.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831\",\"name\":\"Folarin Balogun cleared to play against Belgium after one-game ban suspended by FIFA - Arizona Moving Insider\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/4c85c0ed267f56457308c50f1b0089fc-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-05T22:34:38+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9c272b4cf18e019eb01eb3c1b5d855fb\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/?p=2831#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/4c85c0ed267f56457308c50f1b0089fc-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/arizonamovinginsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/4c85c0ed267f56457308c50f1b0089fc-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"United States' Folarin Balogun (20) reacts after scoring his team's first goal during the World Cup round of 32 soccer match between the United States and Bosnia in Santa Clara, Calif., near San Francisco, Wednesday, July 1, 2026. 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